13 concerts worth catching this summer
Whether you want to relive the ’80s with Pat Benatar, get your groove on with Bruno Mars, or cozy up to an intimate jazz show under the stars at the Crocker, here are 13 concerts to catch in and around Sactown this summer.
Bruno Mars
July 18 In the seven short years since the pop superstar exploded onto the music scene in 2010 with the megahit “Just the Way You Are,” Bruno Mars has played the Super Bowl (twice) and created a slew of genre-jumping earworms like “When I Was Your Man,” “Treasure” and “Uptown Funk.” The 31-year-old Hawaii native will make his Golden 1 Center debut this summer during his global tour in support of his new album 24K Magic, which features songs like the titular single, “Chunky” and “That’s What I Like.” $49.50-$129. 8 p.m. Golden 1 Center. 547 L St. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
Lionel Richie and Mariah Carey
July 22 These two music megastars are pairing up to take the stage at Golden 1 Center. Given that the co-headlining tour’s name is “All the Hits,” expect Lionel Richie to sing chart-toppers from both his Commodores days and solo career like “Easy,” “Three Times a Lady,” “Truly,” “Hello” and “All Night Long,” and Mariah Carey to show off her five-octave range with her own No. 1 tracks like “Vision of Love,” “Dreamlover,” “Hero” and “We Belong Together.” $37-$500. 7 p.m. Golden 1 Center. 547 L St. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
John Mayer
July 27 The 39-year-old singer-songwriter—whose seven Grammy wins include best male pop vocal performance for his single “Your Body Is a Wonderland” from his debut album, 2001’s Room for Squares, and best pop vocal album for 2006’s Continuum—is on the road to promote his latest release, The Search for Everything. Expect to hear familiar melodies like “Love on the Weekend” and “Waiting on the World to Change,” plus minutes-long guitar solos at this Sacramento appearance. $32.50-$130. 7 p.m. Golden 1 Center. 547 L St. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
Tim McGraw and Faith Hill
July 28 The country music power couple are uniting on the concert stage for the third time since they married in 1996 (the previous joint tour in 2006 clocks in as the highest grossing co-headlined country tour of all time). With over 30 No. 1 Billboard hits between them—like Hill’s pop crossovers “This Kiss” and “The Way You Love Me,” and McGraw’s tunes “I Like It, I Love It” and “Just to See You Smile”—and a mountain of trophies, including Grammy Awards for their duets “Let’s Make Love” and “Like We Never Loved At All,” the two are expected to play both the old favorites and newer tracks like their recently released ballad “Speak to a Girl,” the debut single off their upcoming collaborative album. $66-$299. 7:30 p.m. Golden 1 Center. 547 L St. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
Kendrick Lamar
Aug. 13 Following his headlining performance at this year’s Coachella, Kendrick Lamar will stop in Sacramento on his Damn tour to promote his new platinum album of the same name, whose 14 tracks charted on the Billboard Hot 100 within a month of its release in April. In addition to his first No. 1 single “Humble,” the rap superstar will also break out tunes like his Black Lives Matter anthem “Alright.” He’ll be joined onstage by YG, aka Young Gangsta, and funk-soul-R&B artist D.R.A.M. $36-$571.50. 7:30 p.m. Golden 1 Center. 547 L St. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
Lady Gaga
Aug. 15 Since breaking onto the music scene in 2008 with her album The Fame, Lady Gaga has kept fans on their toes, pairing with artists like Kanye West and Tony Bennett, and staging a gravity-defying Super Bowl halftime show. And with last year’s release Joanne (the artist’s middle name), the six-time Grammy winning megastar went back to basics, favoring country-tinged and acoustic songs over her signature electro-pop-dance sound. In addition to those tracks, concerts on her new world tour will still highlight favorite up-tempo tunes from throughout Lady Gaga’s repertoire like “Born This Way,” “Just Dance,” “Bad Romance, “Dope” and “The Edge of Glory.” $52-$296. 7:30 p.m. Golden 1 Center. 547 L St. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
The Decemberists
Aug. 18 This Portland-based progressive rock band has gained acclaim with its whimsical, poetic lyrics and simple, yet driving indie melodies peppered with influences of late ’60s British folk. (The quintet is so celebrated in its hometown that in 2015, Portland’s mayor dubbed Jan. 20 “The Decemberists Day.”) This troupe makes its Mondavi Center debut with an array of career-spanning tunes—like the dreamy “Lake Song,” the synth-heavy “The Abduction of Margaret” and the groove-worthy “O Valencia!”—drawing largely from its 2015 album What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World, which topped the Billboard 200 chart. Tickets start at $29.50. 8 p.m. Mondavi Center’s Jackson Hall. Mrak Hall Dr. and Old Davis Rd. Davis. 530-754-2787. mondaviarts.org
Dierks Bentley, Jon Pardi and Cole Swindell
Aug. 19 Since taking country music by storm in 2003 with the hit “What Was I Thinkin’ ” off his self- titled debut album, Dierks Bentley has been racking up radio faves like “Come a Little Closer,” “Drunk on a Plane,” “5-1-5-0” and “Different for Girls” (a duet with Elle King that won the artist a 2016 CMA Award). At the Wheatland concert, expect to hear a selection of these songs, as well as tunes crooned by Cole Swindell (Academy of Country Music’s new artist of the year in 2014) like “Chillin’ It,” “You Should Be Here” and “Ain’t Worth the Whiskey,” and Dixon native Jon Pardi who made waves with his 2014 top 10 hit “Up All Night.” $23.75-$176. 7 p.m. Toyota Amphitheatre. 2677 Forty Mile Rd. Wheatland. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
Gin Blossoms
Aug. 19 Arizona Music Hall of Fame inductees and alt-rock darlings Gin Blossoms will stop by Folsom on their national summer tour. Known for dominating airwaves and MTV playlists throughout the ’90s, Gin Blossoms “excelled at marrying world-weary lyrics with ebullient melodies,” says Rolling Stone, as the band produced chart-topping singles like “Hey Jealousy” and “Follow You Down.” The show at the Harris Center for the Arts promises to give fans both a generous helping of familiar hits, as well as a sneak peeks at the band’s upcoming album, which it is currently recording. $40-$55. 8 p.m. Harris Center for the Arts. 10 College Pkwy. Folsom. 608-6888. harriscenter.net
OneRepublic
Aug. 25 Led by singer Ryan Tedder—whose credits as a songwriter include Beyoncé’s “Halo,” Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love” and Ellie Goulding’s “Burn”— OneRepublic rose to alt-pop stardom with the 2007 single “Apologize,” which went on to become the most popular digital download in U.S. history. The group will stop in the Sacramento region armed with tunes from its genre-spanning 2016 album Oh My My, like the gospel-esque “Choke,” the electro club song “Human” and rock-tinged “Let’s Hurt Tonight,” as well as the new pop-influenced single, “No Vacancy,” which dropped in April. Warming up the Toyota Amphitheatre crowd will be Fitz and the Tantrums—whose hit song “HandClap” has garnered over 50 million streams on Spotify—and British singer-songwriter and 2012 X Factor winner James Arthur. $33-$185. 7 p.m. Toyota Amphitheatre. 2677 Forty Mile Rd. Wheatland. 800-745-3000. ticketmaster.com
Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo
Aug. 25 The trailblazing rocker has been making music with her husband and guitarist Neil Giraldo (who has also collaborated with artists like John Waite, Kenny Loggins and Rick Springfield) for almost 40 years, generating enduring standards like “Hit Me with Your Best Shot,” “Love Is a Battlefield,” “We Belong” and “Heartbreaker.” Hear the four-time Grammy winner’s powerhouse vocals— she trained as a classical soprano—soar over the driving melodies of these songs and others. The platinum-selling foursome Toto will open the night with its signature pop-rock-jazz fusion on hits like “Rosanna,” “Hold the Line” and the chart-topping “Africa.” $40-$170. 7 p.m. Thunder Valley’s Outdoor Amphitheater. 1200 Athens ave. Lincoln. 408-7777. thundervalleyresort.com
Indigo Girls
Sept. 10 This Grammy Award-winning folk rock duo consists of singer-songwriters Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, who The New York Times says “possess voices that are unflinching [and] harmonies that lock tighter than a battle line.” The pair will return to the stage at the Grass Valley Center for the Arts for an intimate concert featuring ’90s hits ranging from melancholy love song “Power of Two” to rollicking road trip anthem “Get Out the Map,” as well as instrumental ballads from their latest album, 2015’s One Lost Day, and chart-toppers like “Closer to Fine,” their frequent concert closer. $97-$107. 8 p.m. Grass Valley Center for the Arts. 314 West Main St. Grass Valley. 530-274-8384. thecenterforthearts.org
Vivian Lee
Sept. 21 A longtime staple of the Crocker’s summer jazz concerts (and venues like Harlow’s and West Sacramento’s new Station 1), local diva Vivian Lee will fill the museum’s courtyard with her sumptuous vocalizations of Great American Songbook standards from the likes of George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Dave Brubeck, Dizzy Gillespie and Irving Berlin. While Lee, who is backed by a trio of piano, bass and drums, doesn’t typically create her set list until a week or two before her performances, folks can expect to sway to big band and slow swing, as well as Latin rhythms and ballads—the singer’s favorite go-tos include Gershwin’s “Summertime” and Brubeck’s “Take 5.” $14 ($8 for members). 6:30 p.m. Crocker Art Museum. 216 O St. 808-1182. crockerart.org
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